Unreadable
by Isaak89
Summary: My first ever fanfic! What was going through his head that night? Basically the Grants' Party segment of One Day You'll Know rewritten from Ty's point of view. Intended as a one-shot, but I may continue it if the reception is good enough.


_A/N__: I do not own any of the characters, or any quotes from "One Day You'll Know." They all belong to Lauren Brooke. Basically Ty's thoughts and observations during the Grants' Party segment of the sixth book. None of the pairings are together, but they are Amy/Ty, Soraya/Ben, Matt/Ashley, and one-sided Amy/Matt._

As the sun was setting that evening, I began to think that I was a little out of my depth.

I dressed slowly, taking the time to rake my wardrobe for something smarter than my usual work jeans and t-shirt, which now lay in heaps on the floor. I gazed at them wistfully, at the many memorable times I'd had in them. Unfortunately, where I was going tonight, I wouldn't have got as far as the front gate in them.

I'd never particularly enjoyed parties as a child. I'd gone to them with friends, sure, but they were never the fantastic nights to remember that they had been advertised as. It wasn't that I didn't like them; I just preferred it when things were quiet and peaceful.

So how had I got myself roped into this one? The Grants' Christmas Party: one of the most exclusive functions in Virginia, tickets were like gold dust, and I was going to watch the Grants strut and listen to them boast. Why I agreed to go, I have no idea.

OK, I'm not being entirely truthful. I know _exactly_ why I agreed to go:

"_Well," Amy sighed, dropping the water bucket by the tap, "it looks like I'm going to the Grants' party after all"_

_I remember how surprised I was. If these fancy-dos weren't my thing, then they certainly weren't hers._

"_How come?" I asked._

"_I can't let Ben go on his own," Amy explained. We'd found out earlier that Ashley Grant had her sights set on Ben, and letting him go to the party on his own would be like sending him to the gallows. "Please come with us, Ty"._

_I looked into her pleading grey eyes, and every protest that I was going to say died on my lips. "Well it's not really my thing, but," I said, relenting, "if you and Ben are going, then maybe I'll come along too."_

There's something about Amy Fleming that I have a lot of trouble saying no to.

Finally finding a dress shirt and black trousers, I hurriedly ironed them and put them on. And not a moment too soon, for just as I was finishing, I heard a horn sounding outside my block of flats. Grabbing my keys and making an effort to flatten my hair. I resigned myself to the evening.

Ben, also dressed more smartly than I had ever seen him, did a mock double-take as I approached his pickup. "Wow, Ty!" he exclaimed, "I never imagined you wearing anything other than your stable clothes!"

"Don't start," I said, rolling my eyes. "You don't scrub up so badly either."

Ben grinned in response, and started his engine. "Come on," he said, "let's go and pick up the ladies."

The drive to Heartland didn't take long, and once we arrived Ben began blaring his horn, before jumping out of the pickup and leaning against it in a suave manner. I chuckled at his enthusiasm.

"You know," I said, "you're going to have to be on your guard tonight. Ashley Grant's a girl that's used to getting what she wants."

Ben's smile sagged slightly. "I know," he said, "Amy gave me the heads-up earlier. And like I told her, I've seen so many girls like Ashley at my aunt's place, and I'm just not interested."

"Well, _someone_ will be very pleased to hear that," I teased, smirking.

Ben looked confused. "Who are you-" he began, but just then the door to the farmhouse opened, catching both of our attention. Amy and Soraya emerged from the house, both of them in party dresses and beautifully made up.

Ben gave an appreciative wolf-whistle as they approached. "Well, look at the two of you!"

"You like?" Soraya said, giving a twirl.

"I do," Ben grinned.

He was right, of course, but my eyes were drawn in a different direction. The last time I had seen Amy dressed up was at Lou's barn dance, and even then I had been stunned. This time, in her silver dress and high-heels, she was simply breathtaking. Even though she had more make-up on than usual (Soraya's doing, no doubt), she exuded that shy, simplistic beauty that I had always admired in her. I suddenly realised she was watching my face. Had I been staring?

"You look stunning," I said softly. Amy lowered her head, and I'm sure she was blushing.

"It's freezing out here," she muttered, running to the door of the pickup.

Ben had the charm turned up to maximum and was extending his hand to Soraya. "May I escort you to your carriage, ma'am?" he asked in a posh English accent.

"You may," Soraya giggled. Taking his hand, she allowed him to lead her into the pickup. Amy followed suit, still hiding her face from me. Rolling my eyes in amusement, I squeezed myself in and slammed the door.

Ben had elected to be the non-drinker for the night, so he was driving. The two girls and I, however, had crammed ourselves into the seat next to him, so it was very claustrophobic. I became aware that Amy's leg was squashed against mine and that she looked, if possible, even more embarrassed.

"Here," I said, moving in the seat to make more room for her.

"Thanks," she muttered, still not looking me in the eye.

Smashed up against the pickup window I smiled to myself. Most guys would mistake Amy's reserve for unfriendliness, but I knew better. She was as uncomfortable with dressing up and fancy-dos as I was, and my pointing it out hadn't helped. Still, maybe she would relax a little bit once we got to the Grants'.

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Even though I wasn't that interested in the Grants' party, I had to admit I was impressed by their mansion. It looked like a huge, lit-up gingerbread house with its thousands of fairy lights and holly wreaths. Huge crowds of people in dresses or suits flitted in and out of the house, while limousines and luxury cars were constantly picking up and dropping off. The blast of music coming from within the house could be easily heard as we pulled into the driveway.

"Wow!" Soraya said as we approached. "It looks like a fairy palace!"

"Or Santa's Christmas grotto at the shopping centre," Amy muttered. I smirked at this. I knew she was impressed really.

Soraya bounced excitedly into the house, Ben hot on her heels. Amy and I, however, took our time walking into the vastness, the light and the sound.

And Ashley.

Yep, definitely out of my depth.

Inside it was much of the same. It was so crowded we could barely move, and what must have been a hundred Christmas trees glistened from the many corners of the house. Waiters bustled around, somehow managing to expertly navigate the maze of people and not drop the trays they carried, covered with small morsels of food.

Amy strode ahead of me, full of a sense of purpose now she was out of Ben's pickup. "I wonder if Matt's here yet?"

"There!" said Soraya, pointing him out. He was standing by one of the trees, talking with our hostess for the evening: Ashley Grant, as well as some of their friends whose names I didn't know.

"Matt!" Amy called out. I half-hoped he wouldn't hear her, but sure enough...

"Hey, Amy!" he replied, coming over. "Wow, you look great!"

"Well, hi there!"

I was almost glad at Ashley coming over, as it meant Matt's eyes stopped raking Amy's body for a few moments. She was dressed like one of those prom queens you see on MTV: hugely expensive and very revealing dress, hair all curled and done up, a tiara to match and a face plastered with makeup. Way too much glamour for me.

Amy seemed to think this too. "Hi, Ashley," she said. "You look," she seemed to be struggling with the word, "...lovely."

"Thank you," said Ashley, casually, as if she expected such compliments. "That's a nice dress – last year's, of course, but they styles like that don't really date, do they?" She then turned to Ben and I. "Let me get you guys a drink," she simpered.

I was silently seething with anger on Amy's behalf, but she and Soraya were giggling behind Ashley's back, so I relaxed. Our hostess, however, was far from done, except this time she had changed her target. Waving a drinks waiter over, she gazed into Ben's eyes. "I'm so pleased _you _could come," she said.

"Thanks," Ben said, smiling easily.

"You _must_ come and meet my friends," Ashley said, sliding her arm through his. "They're totally _dying_ to meet you."

And so Ben was dragged off by Ashley, shooting "help me" looks at the rest of us.

I grinned. "Looks like that's Ben's evening taken care of," I joked, but then I regretted saying it. Soraya's face had fallen when Ashley had come over, and now she looked thoroughly downcast.

Amy squeezed her arm. "We'll rescue him in a bit," she promised. "We won't let her monopolise him all night."

I opened my mouth to speak, but just then a cheer erupted from the main room. The live band had started up.

"Come on," Amy said, gesturing to us. "Let's go and dance!"

And so we danced. I had heard much better bands, but the music was lively enough that we could move to. At first, Amy, Matt, Soraya and I danced as a group, not making any moves in particular, just moving to the music. But I soon noticed that Matt was making a conscious effort to draw Amy away so they could dance on their own. I glanced at Soraya to see if she had noticed, but for once she hadn't. She was looking wistfully over at Ben, who was standing in the "popular circle," with Ashley hanging off his arm.

Don't get me wrong; I've never had a problem with Matt. Sure, maybe I was a little jealous of how close he and Amy were, but they had been friends since sixth grade, so it was to be expected. And anyway, Amy had always said that she couldn't see them being more than friends, even though he had asked her out more times than I could count. It was just now, seeing him constantly trying to pull her closer to him, that made me want to go and tell him to back off.

When I could bear it no more I nudged Soraya, who was still haphazardly swaying to the music, watching Ben.

"Soraya!" I called. She didn't seem to have heard me over the music. I nudged her harder. "Soraya!" I shouted.

"Huh?" she snapped out of her daze. "You say something, Ty?"

"Look," I hissed, pointing over to Amy and Matt, the latter still trying to get a slow dance going. At that precise moment, Amy said something to Matt that caused his face to fall, and his hand to drop hers.

"Oh, God" Soraya cursed. Then, to me, "You go and get some food." I mock-saluted as she ran towards Amy and Matt. I saw Matt look like he was going to just walk away from them, but then he started walking with them back towards me at one of the food-laden tables.

"Everything okay?" I asked as he approached me.

"Yeah," said Matt, but the flat tone in his voice was obvious. He tried, listlessly, to make conversation. "You enjoying your evening?"

"Kind of," I replied. "These parties aren't really my kind of thing, though."

Matt nodded, still staring off into space. Then suddenly he swung round. "Look, Ty," he said, "has Amy ever said anything to you about-?" But at that moment he was cut off by Amy and Soraya arriving at the table, whispering to each other. I turned back to Matt but he was already filling a plate of food, hiding his face from the rest of us. I shot Amy a confused look, but there was no chance of me getting anything out of her at that moment. I shrugged and then helped myself to some food.

"Where's Ben?" Amy asked

"Where do you think?" Soraya sighed, looking over to where I knew Ben was standing with Ashley and her friends. From where I was, I could just make out what they were saying to each other.

"Come on," Ashley was saying, while pulling on Ben's arm, "you haven't danced all night!"

Ben shot a look at us, and then shook his head. "Maybe later."

"Doesn't that girl know how to take no for an answer?" Soraya hissed to Amy.

"But I totally love this song," Ashley pouted. She tried to slide her hand into his. "Come and dance with me."

"No thank you," said Ben, freeing his hand

"What's the matter?" asked Ashley. "Don't you like me?"

Now Ben looked embarrassed. I too, winced at the thought of the carnage that was about to happen. "Ashley, you've just picked the wrong guy," said Ben. "I'm not looking to get into a relationship at the moment."

Two spots of blotchy red appeared on Ashley's cheeks. "A relationship!" she shouted "What! I only wanted a dance, you jerk!"

And so, our hostess stormed off, leaving poor Ben standing there with the expression of one having just been hit by a train.

"Well, that told her," Amy giggled.

At this, Matt, who had been standing quietly nearby, flared up. "Oh yeah – what a great joke, Amy!" he snapped. "You know, Ashley might actually be upset. Did you stop to think about that? No, of course not – it's all just a game to you, isn't it?"

Amy suddenly looked really guilty. "Matt..." she began.

"Forget it, Amy," Matt said, walking off. "Just forget it."

I didn't quite know what to say. Soraya, too, was lost for words. Then Amy suddenly ran into the crowd after Matt. Soraya charged after her, looking worried.

"Ty!" Ben's voice caught me just as I was about to follow. He ran up to me. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Matt just blew up at Amy." I replied.

"What? Why?" Ben looked astonished. I sighed: obviously he hadn't heard or seen what had passed between them earlier.

"He was trying to get her to do a slow dance with him, but she basically turned him down again on the dance floor," I explained. "And then, she made a joke about what happened between you and Ashley just now. He didn't like that at all."

"Oh." Realisation dawned upon Ben's face. Then he suddenly looked miserable. "I'm the cause of all this, aren't I? I shouldn't have come."

I shot him an annoyed look. "Don't be so stupid," I said. "Now, let's go and find the others."

It didn't take long to find Amy and Soraya. They were standing at the edge of the dance floor, both wearing horrified expressions. When I saw what they were watching, I did a double-take myself: Ashley and Matt were dancing together, very closely. Before I had a chance to wrap my head around this bizarre turn of events, Ben shouted that he was going to get some drinks, and Soraya offered to help him. The two disappeared into the crowd.

Amy and I just stood there, not saying anything, watching Matt and Ashley. It suddenly dawned upon me that this was the first time we had been alone together all night. What with all the Matt and Ashley drama, I hadn't had that much of a chance to talk to her.

"Do you want to dance?"

I just blurted it out. It wasn't a conscious decision to ask. It just seemed to fall out of my mouth, and I cursed myself for being so tactless, particularly after what happened with Matt on the dancefloor, and him being there right now with Ashley; she probably didn't want to go anywhere near.

"With you?" Amy asked, surprised.

"No, with the tree in the corner," I teased.

For a moment, I could see her lips forming "no", but then they curved up into a smile. "OK," she said.

As we walked onto the dancefloor, the band finished the song they had been playing and struck up a much slower number. I rolled my eyes at the irony of it all. Although this was the sort of song people held each other to dance to, Amy and I danced apart. I didn't want to try and start an intimate dance, as Matt had done, but as I watched her sway to the music, the temptation was getting harder to resist. For a while, we just gazed at each other as we moved, but then I suddenly found myself taking gentle hold of her hands.

And so we moved, heat seeming to radiate from our clasped hands. Looking around over Amy's head, I saw Soraya and Ben sitting on the veranda, chatting happily. Closer to home, I saw Matt and Ashley watching us dance. Ashley's face wore an amused expression, Matt's a confused one. Amy appeared not to have noticed; her eyes were fixed on my face. I returned my eyes to hers, and that's how we stayed, in the moment, holding each other and gently drifting in time to the music. Even though we were at a huge party, in the Grants' house, I felt more at peace than I had in a long while. There was just something about holding Amy that felt so _right._

I had no idea how long we were there, but then suddenly our peace was shattered by Ben running up to us. "We've got some drinks and a table to sit at!" he shouted. "Soraya's guarding it!"

I jumped and dropped Amy's hand. I felt like somebody had suddenly turned an amplifier on right next to me. The noise around us seemed deafening now. I watched Amy stammering at Ben to repeat himself, and for the first time in my life, had absolutely no idea what to do.

But then Ben's words started to make sense. _Drinks...table...Soraya guarding.... _My brain felt so sluggish, but I got the gist of what he was saying.

I forced my face into an easy smile. "Great," I said. "You coming, Amy?"

"Sure," Amy said, following us to the table, where Soraya waved us over frantically.

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Another half an hour squashed in Ben's pickup and we were back at Heartland. I glanced at the truck's clock as we pulled up. I was two in the morning.

"Thanks for the lift, Ben," said Amy, as I jumped out of the pickup to let her out.

"No problem," Ben replied. "See you later."

Amy nodded, then said to Soraya, "Ring me," with a very pointed expression.

"I will," promised Soraya. I wondered what they were going to talk about. Would Amy mention our time on the dancefloor? And what had Soraya and Ben been doing on the veranda?

"Night," Amy said to me. She hadn't said that much to me since our dance, I noticed.

"Goodnight Amy," I said softly. There really wasn't much else to say at the moment.

We looked at each other for a few more seconds before she turned and rushed inside. "See you later!" she called.

Although I would gladly have been squashed up against Amy for five more hours, I had a lot more legroom on the short journey from Heartland to my place. Particularly as Soraya was snuggled so close to Ben she was almost sitting on the handbrake. They were talking and laughing together, but I wasn't listening. I just wanted to get home and be alone with my storm of thoughts.

"Here we are, Ty," said Ben, as we pulled up to my house. "Thanks so much for coming with me. I really don't know what I'd have done without you guys tonight." He looked over at Soraya. "That goes for you, too," he said, to which she flashed him a sweet smile.

"No problem," I said, getting out of the pickup. "Now you two behave yourselves," I smiled teasingly.

"Hey!" Ben said, in mock offence. "I've been the perfect gentleman all night! Now see you at Heartland...in a few hours," he said, groaning.

I rolled my eyes. "You'll get over it," I said. "Now, I've got to sleep off that beer I drank. Night, guys."

"See you later, you lightweight!" Ben called, laughing.

"Bye, Ty!" Soraya called, waving furiously.

Ben turned to her. "Let's get you home," he said, before slamming the door and driving off in a cloud of smoke.

I chuckled to myself as they disappeared from sight, but then soon became wrapped in memories of dancing with Amy. And then I began to think of our whole friendship, or relationship, or whatever it was now.

I'd always assumed that Amy and Matt were going to get it together eventually, as he'd been trying to convince her to go out with him for as long as I could remember having known him. But now I knew that if they had, I wouldn't have been happy at all. Tonight had made me realise what I think I already knew, that I harboured deep feelings for Amy Fleming.

A million questions seemed to whirl through my head at this admittance. Would it work? Would it get in the way of Heartland's work? Would it mess up Amy and Matt's friendship? Would Lou and Jack approve? Did Amy even feel the same way?

And what of Marion? Was it a poor way to repay the one who took me in, in my hour of need? The one who had taught me so much?

Yet as I thought of Marion, I realised something. There was no point in asking myself all these questions; stressing over what might be. She had always told me to take one day at a time, and to look at the _good _times ahead, rather than what might go wrong.

And so, I would tackle this situation with this in mind. Whatever changes my relationship with Amy was going through, I would just take it slowly and see how it went. I would try and let her know of my feelings, but I wouldn't let her think that we had to start something. But something had changed between us; there was no question about that.

Feeling much more relaxed, I climbed into bed. As I drifted off to sleep, the last thing to cross my mind was one final quote of Marion's:

"_One day you'll know when the good times are here."_

_A/N: Like it? Hate it? Please let me know, as this gives me stuff to bear in mind for future fics! The Grants' Party is one of my favourite scenes in Heartland, as it shows Amy and Ty starting to get closer. There's a quote from the scene where Ty is described as having an unreadable expression on his face at the end of his and Amy's dance, so that's where the name came from._


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